Peoples Rights Organization

Public support for stricter gun laws has declined 17 percent in the past decade, and nearly two-thirds of the American public would not support banning handguns for anyone but police and other "authorized persons," according to the results of an October Gallup crime survey.

In its report on the survey, "Americans Softening on Tougher Gun Laws?" Gallup noted that even after the 10-year ban on so-called assault rifles came to an end, only 54 percent of those surveyed said laws covering the sale of firearms should be more strict.  This is a drop from the 71 percent who suported tougher laws during the period of 1990-1993, the report said. "The results," said Gallup's report, "portray a populace that has become more hesitant in recent years to say gun laws should be made more strict."

The results of this recent Gallup poll are based on random telephone interviews conducted Oct. 11-14, 2004 with 1,012 adults, with a plus/minus error margin of 3 percent. Slightly more than a third of those surveyed said gun laws should be kept as they are, while 11 percent said current gun laws are too strict.

The Gallup report, written by the polling firm's Government and Public Affairs editor, Darren K. Carlson, also noted a dramatic decrease in support for tougher gun laws soon after Congress passed the Brady Law in 1993 and the smi-auto and full-capacity magazine ban in 1994. From the 71 percent support for strict gun laws shown in 1993, support dropped to 62 percent in 1995, and dropped further in the latest sampling.

As we have said before, none of this can be good news for gun control activists (now calling themselves "gun safety" advocates), nor for anti-gun politicians.  These statistics also are another problem for officials in Ohio's capitol city of Columbus, who are holding hearings to possibly enact regulations on so-called "assault weapons."